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Fuel Cell Folly
What Is Hydrogen?
Hydrogen is a manufactured gas used in numerous ways. Hydrogen does not exist on earth in a
free state and must be manufactured from some other material that includes
hydrogen as one of its components. One of the most popular uses of hydrogen is
in the food processing industry where it is used to turn normal fats into what
are called "transfats," allowing for a long shelf-life for processed foods. (It
is universally accepted that transfats are the most harmful form of fats for
humans.) It is also used in refining hydrocarbons into fuels, as a fuel for the
space program, and as a feedstock for fertilizers.
For the purpose of automobile fueling, hydrogen can be used in two ways. First it can be burned
in an internal combustion engine (ICE) serving as a replacement for gasoline.
Demonstration cars with ICEs running on hydrogen have been available for years.
When used as a fuel for ICEs, the hydrogen does not pollute at the point of usage. But pollution is generated at the point of manufacturing the hydrogen.
The second way of using hydrogen is in a electro-chemical process previously described to
generate electricity in a fuel cell to turn the wheels of the car. This is the
familiar fuel cell vehicle.
Next: Sources of Hydrogen
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